Do flu vaccines really protect the elderly?

DO FLU vaccines really protect the elderly? It's been a point of bitter dispute among flu experts. Specific studies comparing vaccinated and unvaccinated patients show the shots save lives, but national figures show little change in the numbers of elderly people dying from flu since vaccination became widespread after 1980.

What is going on? A new analysis has revealed that elderly people are still dying of flu, but far fewer than 30 years ago - and those who are dying are older. This has not only muddied the waters in determining the effectiveness of vaccinations programmes, but it suggests we are due for another flu pandemic.

Last week, Kristin Nichol of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis told the largest flu meeting ever, in Toronto, Canada, that when the Dutch boosted vaccination rates from less than 50 per cent of the elderly population to more than 80 per cent during ...

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